


Tales of the Ladybug

by FabiusMaximus



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-20
Updated: 2019-08-18
Packaged: 2020-05-15 05:45:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19289359
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FabiusMaximus/pseuds/FabiusMaximus
Summary: Shorts set in the universe of Miraculous Ladybug, ranging from angsty to fluffy.





	1. Prison Visits

Gabriel didn’t expect Ladybug to come visit him in prison. It had been five years since he’d been captured, since he had found out that his son was Chat Noir.

Since he’d been sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of remission.

And here was Ladybug.

“It has been some time,” Gabriel said, tugging at his prison uniform. 

“Yes.”

“In fact, I haven’t seen you since the trial.”  Gabriel’s lawyer had tried to force Ladybug to reveal herself, but the court had refused, ultimately compromising on her revealing herself solely to the presiding judge. 

Given the amount of publicity and the unwelcome consequences that had attended in regards to his son's unmasking, Gabriel had to agree with the court.

“I’ve… Been semi-retired.” She tilted her head staring at him.

“Come to see if I have plotted out a new escape attempt?”  Gabriel lifted his hands, showing off his manacles. “The warden takes such worries very seriously.”

“Because he doesn’t know much about the miraculouses, doesn’t know that you’re effectively powerless.”

“Probably wise.” Gabriel leaned back and then blinked as Ladybug looked at the camera, did something, and then softly said: “Spots off” to reveal… _Marinette Du Peng Cheng-Agreste?_ She put a device gleaming with energy, on the desk and Gabriel immediately realized that there was no danger of anyone overhearing their conversation or seeing Marinette.

“I have a question for you,” she said. “How does a wish work?”

Gabriel remained silent, processing the fact that one of the two enemies who had brought him down had been his son’s wife and mother of his grandchild, not that he’d been allowed to see him.

“Why would you ask that?”

“I have need of it.” She paused, as if expecting him to explode. Gabriel merely shook his head.

“I’m afraid I’ll need more than that, especially since you have the book, and I presume the Guardian knows how a wish works, which tells me that the wish isn’t needed to stop a rogue planet hurtling towards earth. It’s something personal, something that your hu—my son would not agree with. Something the guardian would not agree with.”

“Alya. My friend. You know, the girl who ran the Ladyblog?”  Marinette paused, raised her hands, twining them together. “She hasn’t been feeling well, lately and we finally got her to get to a doctor—she was always busy, with her baby and all…”

“And the news wasn’t good.”

“Stage 4 pancreatic—the doctors don’t… It’s not good. I’ve been taking care of her baby but—”

“But she was your friend. Emelie was also mine, in addition to being my wife.” Gabriel raised his hand to forestall Marinette’s statement. “Do you know one benefit of being stripped of your assets and confined to a prison? “

“I… no?”

“You no longer can avoid your counselor. You no longer have the money and reputation that cause people to write you off as “eccentric” instead of harsher terms that are more accurate.  You must _face_ your deeds.” He looked at her. “Mrs. Du—”

“Call me Mrs. Agreste,” Marinette said softly. “The other’s a handful and after… Everything, I wanted to take the name to remind Adrien how proud I am of him.”

“Yes. Thank you.  You came straight here. You thought of this and came here, without your husband, without the guardian. Only fortunately, you came to me, and after far too long, after having lost everything, I can tell you it would destroy you. The wish requires a price. And it will be paid in another young  mother’s health, another child wondering what is wrong. And you will remember it. So tell me, Mrs. Agreste, how long will you endure that price, wondering if the person who pays it is someone you know, or nobody you know, and does that make any difference?”

“I… She’s my closest friend. My sister.”

“My wife. And I expect that when all is said and done, neither would speak to us ever again if they found they had been redeemed at such a cost.” He sighed. “I lost my son, my pride and joy, however poorly I showed it, because I kept focusing on the _chance_ to bring my wife back. Nothing else mattered. It consumed me, and even if you make the wish just walking out of this building, it will consume you as well.”

“I hate it,” she finally whispered. “Why did we have to know?”

“I don’t know. Maybe one day there will be a great catastrophe that only a wish can undo, something worth the price. I can’t imagine what it is. That’s why I didn’t speak of it in court. Let them think that I was a madman, delirious with grief. The consequences of the truth coming out are too terrible to consider.”

Marinette closed her eyes, tears running down her face. “I—wish… No. Thank you.”

“Young lady, you are the wife of my son and the mother of my grandchild. I destroyed my family: I do not wish the same on you. No thanks are required.” He paused and nodded. “Do tell my son that as little as it means to him, I _am_ proud of him. When the moment came, he chose the right course.”

“I… I will.” Marinette said, standing up. “Tiki, spots on.” A flash and moments later, Ladybug stared at him. “If you want I could…”

“Put in a word? There’s no need. After years of trying to control fate, I find it refreshing to simply accept it. Good Day, Ladybug… And I hope that the matter we spoke of comes to a happy conclusion.”


	2. Just Smile

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette is always smiling. 
> 
> No matter the cost.

Marinette dragged herself up the stairs. She’d smiled at her mother and father, but had begged off staying downstairs due to exhaustion from a full day. Her parents had agreed with the little bit of reserve she’d noticed growing over the last year. Two years after receiving the miraculous, and her “flakey” ways were no longer a joke. They were the subject of quiet family meetings and her parents had even suggested seeing a psychologist. Marinette promised to do better. 

“Better” lasted until the next Akuma attacked. She wondered how Chat Noir handled it. Marinette had been cutting back on her activities, trying to keep up at school, trying to be positive, because if you weren’t, that was just _begging_ for a purple butterfly to land on your head, or maybe someone else’s head.

Keep smiling, while everyone congratulates you on how positive you were.

Keep smiling, because if you stop, you may never smile again.

Marinette paused, looking at her room. It was neat, but there was just a little bit of dust on her sewing machine. She hadn’t had much of a chance to use it. She tried, but the last several days, there’d been nearly two Akuma _a day._

The only people she could really talk to were Tikki and Master Fu.

Master Fu was nearly two centuries old and Tikki… Well, Tikki was older than that. Neither one, she thought, really understood how hard it was to watch things vanishing away. Movies, sleep overs, just talking.  People pulling away because there really was only one simple answer to Marinette always vanishing and missing meetings.

Maybe she didn’t really _want_ to be with them.

_I do. Oh, God, I do._

In about a year, they’d be graduating and the class would be heading to the four winds, never again to be all in the same place.

But right now, she was looking at a letter her mother had put on her desk.

LONDON INSTITUTE OF FASHION DESIGN

Not even among her first ten choices, but now…

Marinette bit her lip as she lifted the letter. It was thin. Thin envelopes meant only one thing. She opened it and looked at the elegant lettering.

“Dear Ms. Dupein-Cheng, although your submitted portfolio was impressive, we regret that the uneven nature of your work indicates that you are not…”

She put the letter down.

Her fingers were still.

Her hands weren’t trembling. Not at all. There were other schools.

All she had to do was keep trying.

Keep smiling.

It’d work out.

Just keep smiling.

She undressed and went to bed. Sometimes Akuma’s arose in the night, so she had to be ready. Had to get as much sleep as she could.

And just before she fell asleep, she could clench her fists and sob.

It was just a few minutes, and then she’d be asleep, and whether the Akuma alert woke her in the middle of the night, or it was another day of school, waiting for an Akuma to interrupt her day, she’d be ready for it.

With a smile on her face.


End file.
